Six Simple Apps That Help You Get Rich Quick — Ethically

Step 1: Save the world. Step 2: Profit.

By Kirk Miller

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(“To the bartender!” Thank you, drunken members of the peanut gallery.)

But seriously: If you had the opportunity to invest your money, make a nice return and do the world some good, wouldn’t you take it?

Enter Shape, a new type of investment app that allows you to invest in companies that align with your morals while still working with the online brokers you already use.

It takes about a minute to get going. After signing up, the app asks if there any types of companies you don’t want to invest in (e.g. tobacco, alcohol, weapons, nuclear). Then, it’ll ask if you want to connect to a broker you already use (say, eTrade) and finally, offer you different investments by social theme (equality, green, refugees, etc.).

Say you want to do something for people affected by recent weather-related disasters. Tap “Hurricanes” and you’ll see a list of companies that have committed over $1 million in response to hurricanes Harvey and Irma.

From there, you can give deeper into each company: Tap “KO” under Hurricanes, for instance, and suddenly we have a 12-month performance tracker on Coca-Cola, the stock’s volatility and a “for what’s it worth” overview that showcases the company’s other social efforts.

Swell: Invest in “curated” portfolios of publicly traded companies in areas centered around renewable energy, clean water and zero waste.

AfricaConnekt: An intuitive web platform where the world’s biggest investors and brightest minds can collaborate with budding African entrepreneurs in areas such as technology, energy, communications and the environment.